Direct tax collection shortfall worry likely to add fiscal deficit woes

Officials have admitted that there could be a combined shortfall of Rs 70,000 crore-1 trillion on GST, though the centre's own GST shortfall will not be more than Rs 29,000-30,000 crore

The Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government’s repeated assertions that the fiscal deficit target for the year will be met in spite of no compromise in capital expenditure hinged on one factor: The direct tax collections for the year will exceed the Budget Estimates.

Now, with even that factor under considerable doubt, meeting the already challenging target will be an uphill task, unless the government slashes expenditure and carries forward a substantial chunk of subsidy payments to the next fiscal year, analysts and experts say.

The fiscal deficit target for 2018-19 is Rs 6.24 trillion, or 3.3 per cent of gross